Questions About Muskets and Musketry

[elektratig]

Thanks, everyone, for your comprehensive answers!

David,

I did read Gary's post very well and I understand what he said, I was only answering to your sentence concerning the 9 step load and ramrod since you said, and I quote:

"Gary, I know of no reference to soldiers of the period loading thier muskets in the manner which you describe. It would bend the ramrod nearly every time. Yes soldiers would lay cartridges in front of thier positions on the firing steps and often times would take the ramrods free of the channel and leave it propped in a convenient place. It speeded the loading process since one did not have to worry about drawing it from the channel or taking the time to replace it there. Historical evidence indicates that this was not done very frequently though."

There's plenty of reference from historical records, to personal diaries, to reenactors. I'm a reenactor and trust me it's fun, exciting and hot in the summer to portray a Union soldier. Try reenacting!

[1st_maine_trooper]

Wil, I am a Federal cavalry reenactor, a part time infantry reenactor and former N-SSA competetor. I have the gear use it on a fairly regular basis. When commenting on what was done 140 plus years ago, I will never quote what a reenactor does unless it is backed up by susbtantial research. I also have not come across any references to soldiers jamming the ends of their ram rods into the earth or breastowrks and then ram by pushing the musket onto the rammer as Gary described. I do know of accounts where cartridges were pre placed and rammers were propped up within easy reach as this does speed the loading process since one does not have to worry about clearing the ramrod channel or replacing the rammer back into the channel after the cartridge has been rammed home.

Gary quoted "The latter is mentioned because it was not unknown for soldiers to prop their ramrod into the earthwork such that they wouldn't have to handle it. Cartridges would be placed on the ground in front of them. In combat, the soldier grabbed the cartridge and loaded it. He then raised the gun to the ramrod (that was propped horizontally into the earthworks) and rammed it."
Ramrods are only approximately 1/2 longer than the bore depth. add to the the length of bullet and powder and you come up with about 2 inches of ramrod protruding from the bore when the bullet is fully seated on the powder charge. Jamming 2 inches of the rammer into the earthwork or whatever is enough to support the rod and when ramming a bullet down a dirty barrel it will most assuredly either, bend, get pushed in deeper or both which would prevent the bullet from being seated and result in bad problems for the soldier unhappy enough to pull the trigger and burst the barrel.

Dave

[wt_jimbos]

For myself, I can not see it to be in anyway advantagous to placing a ramrod horizontally then trying to thread your rifle on the end of it, especially inside a breastwork.
I would be interested to see Gary's reference, my feeling is that he may have miss interpreted the text, we will see....very interesting.

[johan_steele]

David and Wil, I may have an explanation for Gary referencing loading a long arm in such a manner. I believe the reference he is refering to is from Raseca. THough, for the life of me I do not recall the unit but remember finding reference to their arms 2 & 3 band band enfields and 1841's. Theses troops tapped a hole into the head logs and inserted 3 band enfield ramrods into the hole, these were long enough to ram home a ball and didn't bend. The practice was brought to end when a round shot shattered this particular head log and turned one ramrod into a lethal spear killing a man. NOw I am only recalling one reference, but the implication is that it was, limited, experimental and w/ the lethal consequence not repeated.

I don't see it being done frequently, I've sent quite a few live rounds down range myself and can assure the readers that after 15-20 rounds of rapid fire the fouled powder residue makes ramming home the ball a bit difficult and w/out the proper leverage I think it would be ****ed difficult.

[gary]

My apologies all for my delayed response. My personal CW library is in excess of 350 books and I was searching in the Confederate area. It wasn't there. The quote was from Gordon Rhea's "The Battles For Spotsylvania Court House and the Road to Yellow Tavern." On page 64:

"'The pole saved many a head,' a Confederate recounted. To enabled an increased rate of fire, the rebels spread cartridges on the ground and jammed their ramrods under the head logs. 'It is astonishing how fast troops that are practiced can load and fire,' a Confederate boasted. 'The old trained veterans decided the only way to succeed was to be quick and deliberate, fire with precision, so as to kill as many as possible; but after a slaughter of thousands in a few days they seemed to multiply like flies that had been poisoned.'"

In his endnote, Rhea cites: Frank B. Williams, Jr., ed., "From Sumter to the Wilderness: Letters of Sgt. James Butler Suddath, Co. E, 7th Regiment, S.C.V.," South Carolina History Magazine, LXIII (1962), 77.

I was looking for it among my books on the Atlanta Campaign. I first searched for it in the first hand accounts by soldiers who fought in the Army of Tennessee (but my bookcase isn't that well organized). It may also be in Baumgartner's Echoes of Battle: The Atlanta Campaign which I borrowed through inter-library loan. I understand it has just been reprinted.